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Friday, January 13, 2012

Nathalie Boutté - Collage

Nathalie Boutté, a paper artist from Montreuil, France, cuts and gently layers paper strips with astonishing results. Her newest work is an emotional rendition of a beloved photograph of Nathalie's grandfather with her sister.

2011 Nathalie Boutté, Remember. Cut paper, 86 cm x 60 cm

Originally the piece was to be titled "The Little Music of the Memories" as the picture reminds her of Simon and Garfunkel song lyrics...

"Long ago it must beI have a photographPreserve your memoriesThey're all that's left of you"

Bookends

Nathalie chose a music dictionary from which to extract the text, and the other is a very thick white paper she enjoys using. The piece appears dreamlike at a distance, but pixelated when seen close at hand.

It fascinates me that Natalie is able to convey likenesses, even age and small details - perhaps I spy eyeglasses and a mustache - with simple snips of paper. How many times must she step away to get a better view of her work?